Up to 500 dead animals were found in a Philadelphia home after what appears to have been a ritual religious sacrifice, police say.Investigators found the remains of cats, deers, turtles and other animals strewn throughout the Feltonville house and buried in the back, The Philadelphia Daily News reports.”There’s all kinds of stuff in there. Dead animals, dead critters, wax, feces, candles. It’s a nightmare,” Officer Jerry Czech of the Pennsylvania Game Commission told the newspaper.

According to George Bengal, director of law enforcement at the Pennsylvania chapter of the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the remains may include the carcasses of two monkeys, one of which was found on an altar.”We have uncovered some wildlife remains inside of the property,” he said, adding that remains of cobras, leopards and beavers also appear to have been found. “We’re still digging.”More